Flashback
by NuGirl
Summary: School was out for the summer and travelling back for Viola and Sir Lionel's wedding would occur soon. What happens when you stop and think back on what lead you to this point in your life?
1. A Proposal

**Disclaimer: When Calls the Heart, its contents, character and situations are the property of Crown Media, Hallmark, Janette Oke, Brian Bird, Michael Landon, and the creators & writers.**

 **To our lovely LisaNY – Thank you for the ear to bounce ideas off and for the eyes that picks up all my mistakes. And letting me bombard you for all of my crazy ideas at crazy hours of the day**

 **I have tweaked season two slightly. This includes Charles proposing, but Jack was not planning to at the time. Julie hasn't run away from home...Yet, may not at all. Please enjoy my short story ~ Em**

* * *

Jack sat himself down at his desk in the jail, the door open ajar, just enough to be able to see the window of Elizabeth's room over the café. He knew that she would be packing for a trip back to Hamilton. School was out for the summer and he and Elizabeth would be travelling back for Viola and Sir Lionel's wedding soon. Jack shook his head at the thought of the three-ring circus this society event was going to be. Loosing the collar of his jacket, he started patting his pockets and located the key to the top drawer. Shuffling through his paints, art supplies and drawings he found the dark blue box that he had kept hidden for a number of months.

Flicking open the box, carefully he withdrew the delicate ring enclosed. The last time he and Elizabeth had visited Hamilton for Viola and Sir Lionel's engagement party, he had taken Faith to help him shop for a ring. Originally Tom was supposed to go with him, but that would have only ended in disaster. Over the prior year, Faith had become a close friend of both himself and Elizabeth. Grasping the ring between his forefinger and thumb of each hand, he viewed the filigree ring that he had chosen, admiring the intricate design that adorned the ring along with the European cut diamond. Accenting the centre diamond were four single cut diamonds that Jack took in thoughtfully as he rolled the ring back and forth.

Smiling to himself, he placed the ring back in its rightful spot. Loosing his red serge once more Jack started to unbutton the coat, he started to think back over the previous year. It hadn't all been plain sailing; they had had their ups and downs. Communication had been their biggest hurdle, something that their relationship was in constant need of working on. The biggest miscommunication had been the Charles fiasco.

It wasn't until Elizabeth saw Charles on bended knee that she realised what had been happening in her life and how serious her actions had been. She had never meant to lead Charles on; she had gotten caught up in her old life in Hamilton. Beth, as she was known in Hamilton, was a different person, but she was so much more than that life. Elizabeth knew that her life held more than dinner parties and simply staying at home being someone's wife and mother and she had told Charles so.

Unbeknown to her Jack was standing outside the door leading into the schoolhouse.

* * *

 _*Flashback*_

 _Outside Jack's heart began to race, he wasn't sure how much more, if any, heartache he could take. Hadn't it only been a few short days since he and Elizabeth had exchanged 'I Love Yous?' Where was this going? Jack sighed and was about to turn to walk away when he heard Elizabeth's strong voice ring out._

 _"Charles, stand up! This isn't right. We aren't meant to be more than friends. I could never think of you in that way. My heart belongs to another," Elizabeth firmly told him, taking a step or two back._

 _Jack's breathing began to even out._

 _"Elizabeth, how could you turn me down? I told you I'd decide when it was time for me to stop perusing you. Jack cannot offer half of what I can offer you. He could never provide you with the lifestyle you are used to, or that you deserve," Charles commanded._

 _"It is no concern of yours Charles," started Elizabeth._

 _"And I have something that he never will have, your father's favour," interrupted Charles. "And would you give up everything for that simple Mountie?"_

 _"Get up!" Elizabeth ordered, finding something strong deep inside of herself. "Get up, and leave. I have given you my answer. I will not marry you, it's not right. I am not ready to marry anyone yet, least of all you."_

 _Charles turned on his heel and flew out of the door, not taking the time to notice Jack at the doorway._

 _Jack slid around the doorway, leaning his forearm against the doorframe and took in the sight of Elizabeth sinking down onto the front pew, trying to even out her breathing. Whilst Jack hadn't thought that he would be ready to propose to Elizabeth right now, they hadn't ever had time to court yet, he just knew that she was going to be the one for him. Just like he had told her, she was the one, the only one._

 _Walking down the aisle, Jack could hear Elizabeth muttering to herself._

 _"You know what they say about people who talk to themselves. I did tell you I would be seriously concerned about your health if I heard you doing that," Jack gently teased._

 _Elizabeth's breath caught as she turned around to find her handsome man walking towards her._

 _"Oh Jack," came her breathless reply. "Charles, he just… he just."_

 _"It's okay."_

 _"No. Jack you need to know. I never thought spending time with him was wrong. You were right," Elizabeth continued, the words just began spilling out her mouth. "I didn't know he was going to be here. I was expecting you. And I thought he was you, when he knocked. And I was no way encouraging him."_

 _"Elizabeth." Jack knelt down to take Elizabeth's hands in his. "Stop."_

 _"No, we said that together we could face everything. And for us to do that, I need to be honest with you."_

 _"Elizabeth, I heard it all. I am so proud that you stood up for yourself," Jack told her whilst bring her to her feet and enveloping her into a hug. "It's ok, " he gently told her, pulling her a bit tighter as the tears started rolling down her face._

 _"Hey," he commented, pulling back from the hug slightly so he could look at her face. Digging into his trousers pocket, he withdrew a handkerchief and ran it over the tears making their way down Elizabeth's face._

 _"It's okay, we're going to be okay," he firmly told her._

 _*End Flashback*_

* * *

Jack smiled as he thought back on that day. It was the beginning of something new in their courtship, they were finally taking steps forwards, rather than the one step forward and two steps back that had plagued their courtship early on.

And whilst he knew, even back then, that there were always going to be challenges, nothing had prepared them for Viola and Lionel's engagement party in Hamilton a few weeks later. Seeing the Thatchers as Elizabeth's partner, hopefully not running into Charles again and meeting Faith again.


	2. Aunt Agatha

**Thank you everyone for your kind words and views, they mean the world to me. I still cannot believe how warm and welcoming the Hearties community has been.**

 **A huge thank you to bbflabradors, LisaNY, mp511cole, lsockett, FanFicChick, Heartie, Cass Pine and a guest who left reviews for me. Thank you for taking the time to let me know what you thought. And I hope to thank you all personally once I find my feet on the site again.**

 **Thank you for embracing the flashback scenes, it is not a way that I have written before and I am glad that you like it.**

 **And for any words that might seem to be spelt slightly differently, please forgive my Australian way of spelling. And again to Lisa to editing and picking up anything that seemed amiss, thank you...Em**

* * *

Jack decided to slip into something more comfortable as he continued to reminisce over their courtship. Knowing that he was not going to interrupt Elizabeth until dinner, he settled for his blue suit, leaving the jacket hung near the door for just before he left the jail. Glancing up at the clock that hung on the wall, he found that he still had plenty of time until he had to leave. Kicking back on his bed, he folded his arms behind his head, and continued his thoughts.

Charles had hightailed it out of Hope Valley the day after his failed marriage proposal. Neither Elizabeth, nor Jack could figure out how Charles had left that day without a stagecoach; but you could do anything when you had the money.

 _*Flashback*_

 _Four weeks later Elizabeth met Jack at breakfast, telegraph in hand._

 _"Jack," Elizabeth started, as she slid into her seat. "Julie sent a telegram yesterday informing us of Viola's engagement party and we are expected to attend," she finished._

 _"We?" Jack questioned. "Surely she means just you."_

 _Elizabeth gave him a small grin, whilst pushing the paper across the table at him._

 _Glancing down, Jack nearly choked on his coffee when he saw that indeed, Julie had written that an invitation had been extended from Mr. & Mrs. Thatcher to both him and Elizabeth to attend. Jack let his mind wander over the reasons why the Thatchers would have invited him. It's not that Viola had given him a warm welcome, especially after running into him innocently having dinner with Faith. _

_Faith, this would be the perfect opportunity to introduce Elizabeth and Faith. He knew that Elizabeth had not be thrilled about him spending time with Faith whilst they were in Hamilton, and wondered what Viola may have said to her sister about them. Viola struck him as very similar to the elder Thatcher, most concerned about society and standing. So why would they be requesting him at the engagement party?_

 _"Jack!" Elizabeth called for a fourth time, finally breaking through his thoughts_

 _"Hmm?"_

 _"You seemed lost, what were you thinking about?"_

 _"Just you," came his smooth reply._

 _"You expect me to believe that?"_

 _Jack simply flashed his dimples._

* * *

 _Jack hesitantly hung back at the doorway of the Thatcher mansion. His last visit had not ended well when he had turned down Mr. Thatcher's offer of a job. Not to mention the fact that he was courting Elizabeth now and her refusal of Charles' marriage proposal would probably be blamed on him. One of the things that Jack had learned about the Thatcher family over the last few months, was that both parents believed that their daughters could never do anything wrong. This was most evident during the whole Julie-Tom car accident fiasco. Even after Julie had finally confessed to being the one in the driver's seat, Mr. Thatcher still had not believed her; he was still blaming Tom for the whole affair._

 _Over the previous few months, Elizabeth had been receiving telegrams reminding her of the eligibility of Charles; of how she needed someone who could provide her with the lifestyle that she deserves and grew up with. These were all things that certain other people would be unable to provide. Elizabeth had sent back numerous replies stating that she was happy courting Jack and they were happy together. Then they had received the invitation regarding the engagement party and here he was currently stuck at the door of the Thatcher home, unable to move forward._

 _Constable Jack Thornton, the man who had taken on and arrested the Tolliver gang amongst other things, was stuck to the floor at the entryway of the mansion. Jack couldn't stop thinking about how Mr. & Mrs. Thatcher would have preferred Charles to be here with Elizabeth and how much he did not believe that he would be warmly welcomed into the house or family. Elizabeth had not yet noticed that she had left Jack behind. She was already calling out to the family, somewhat surprised that there was not one family member or servant there to greet them._

" _Well I suppose that everyone is busy getting ready to the party tonight," she mused to herself. "What do you think Jack? … Jack?" Elizabeth turned around looking for her lost partner._

 _Turning around she found Jack rooted to the doorstep. Smiling slightly to herself and with a small shake of her head, Elizabeth turned fully and started to make her way back toward him._

" _What are you doing here?" she asked softly, reaching out to pull on the strap of the bag that he had slung over his body. Giving it a playful tug, she attempted to move him into the house._

" _It might cost you," Jack teased, in an attempt to ease the panic he was feeling._

 _Elizabeth smile widened. "Hmm, I'm not sure if I have enough of what you want."_

" _I was thinking along the lines of a similar payment as the horse riding lessons," Jack commented with a twinkle in his eyes._

 _Elizabeth's eyes widen. "Jack!" Looking down slightly, she suddenly reached up, grabbed his lapels and placed a kiss on his cheek. "How's that?" she breathed._

 _Jack taken by surprise, snaked his arms around her and pulled her closer. Looking down he locked eyes with her and the world around them ceased to exist._

" _I thought you said he wasn't your Mountie, Elizabeth Thatcher," Aunt Agatha announced, breaking the couple's spell._

 _Startled Elizabeth swung around to find Aunt Agatha coming down the stairs towards them. Jack immediately removed his arms from around Elizabeth's waist._

" _Aunt Agatha," Elizabeth exclaimed, rushing towards her to embrace her._

" _Well Constable Thornton," Aunt Agatha started. "Aren't you going to come in or are you unable to pass through the doorway? My that does make for some problems this evening with you blocking the doorway."_

 _Jack seemed to be kicked out of his terror and smiled, dimples fully on display. He walked forward to the two ladies standing at the bottom of the stairs._

" _Ma'am," he greeted. "I-I am sorry about that inappropriate display."_

" _Nonsense my boy," Aunt Agatha brushed off. Beside her Elizabeth smiled and slipped her hand into Jack's._

" _Aunt Agatha, where is everyone? I expected people to be running around. I at least thought that Julie would be here. Or Mother and Father…" Elizabeth trailed off, whilst looking around._

" _Oh, they are all out finding things for tonight's party. Doing this and that," Agatha informed them whilst waving her arms around. "And Viola is out buying yet another dress, whilst Charles has been in and out today too."_

" _Charles?" Jack asked tightly, his back straightening at once._

 _Elizabeth noticed and squeezed his hand comfortingly._

" _Oh, never mind him! Viola insisted on inviting him. You have nothing to worry about Constable," Agatha told him._

 _Elizabeth raised an eyebrow upon hearing that it was Viola invited Charles. It made her wonder why._

" _Hmm…" pondered Elizabeth. "Anyway Aunt Agatha, I must show Jack to his room," as she started to walk towards the stairs._

" _Elizabeth!" Jack protested and gently pulled her back. "I've booked a hotel, it would be inappropriate for me to stay here," he told her. "Even if I have seen your knees," he teased, pulling her close to whisper the last sentence into her ear._

 _Elizabeth went bright red and buried her face into his jacket._

 _Aunt Agatha smiled. "Well, I will leave you two young people to yourselves. Elizabeth… Constable Thornton I will see you tonight at the party, if not before," she bid them farewell as she wandered off._

" _Jack! Must you say those things?"_

 _Jack only chuckled. "Elizabeth, dear. I must go I'm sure that your parents would not like me staying here."_

 _Elizabeth began to protest._

" _You're still talking," he teased. "I should go. Your suitcases are by the door for whichever poor servant has to pick them up. Make sure you warn them that they weigh a ton," his dimples showing. "I will see you tonight."_

 _Elizabeth watched as he walked out the door._

" _Jack!" she went after him. As he turned, she threw her arms around him and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I'll see you tonight, I'll be the one in red," she whispered before kissing him again._

 _*End Flashback*_

Jack very much appreciated Aunt Agatha, it was nice to have a senior member of the Thatcher family who was in his corner. It had been a nice easing into the Thatcher mansion before the party. Thinking back, he had never felt so uncomfortable in his life. That was, until the engagement party that evening.


	3. The Engagement Party

**Thank you again to all my lovely reviewers, those reviews make my day :) Hopefully I've been able to reply to all of them.**

 **To my lovely LisaNY - I can't thank you enough for casting an eye over this and editing for me. Most of all for providing me with some of the best lines ever. Actually they are the best lines in this story - I'm sure you'll be able to pick them. Thank you for sharing them with me**

* * *

Jack chuckled slightly to himself. He liked Aunt Agatha, she was probably one of only a few of Elizabeth's relatives whom actually liked and respected him. She respected him as a Mountie and as the man who was courting her niece. At last someone was in his corner and seemingly in his and Elizabeth's corner. Jack had noticed over their visit that Aunt Agatha was not the same as Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher or even Viola. Whilst she was of the same class, she did not seem to put stock in the same ideas that the elder Thatchers did.

If only the elder Thatchers could see that whilst Jack was not of the same social standing, he very much loved their middle daughter. He might not be able to provide the lifestyle that Charles could, but he would do the best he could. If only the Thatcher's could understand that. It had started out as such a lovely night...

 _*Flashback*_

 _Jack felt his breath hitch as he entered the foyer of the Thatcher mansion. Coming down the stairs towards him was Elizabeth, a vision in a floor length red dress, he could only describe the colour as a crimson red, similar to his own red serge._

" _Mouth closed Constable," Julie teased as she reached the bottom step._

 _Jack was shaken out of his reverie; he hadn't even noticed that Julie was accompanying her elder sister._

" _Hi," Jack breathed._

" _Hi," Elizabeth replied as quietly._

 _Jack offered up a boutique of tulips and leaned over to chastely place a kiss on Elizabeth's cheek._

 _Julie bounced on the spot slightly, giddy of the rare display of romance that her sister had ever shown._

" _I'll take these from you, Jack," she told him, reaching out for the flowers. "And why don't you and Elizabeth run along into the ballroom and meet some people."_

 _Jack and Elizabeth could only watch after Julie as she scamped off, tulips in hand._

" _Shall we?" Jack asked, offering up his open hand._

 _Elizabeth smiled shyly as she came over to tuck her arm into the space between Jack's body and outstretched hand. Jack turned to smile slightly at her, as his hand covered hers and they walked towards the door leading into the festivities._

" _Jack." Elizabeth brought them to a pause. "Before we go in there, I want you to know how much I care for you."_

 _Jack tensed slightly at the comment and pulled away slightly. "Care for me?" he questioned._

" _You misunderstood. I want you to remember how deeply my feelings run. No matter what my family may say to you, it's you that I care about."_

 _Jack nodded, his dimples beginning to show._

" _Well, shall we, Miss Thatcher?"_

 _Taking a deep breath, Jack opened the door and gently placed his hand on the small of Elizabeth's back, just a small amount of pressure to move her forward._

 _What greeted them was an extravagantly decorated room. In Jack's eyes, no expense had been spared. From their standing point, just inside the door, he could see long tables covered with finger food, another table with punch bowls and crystal glasses filled with various liquids. In the corner a string quartet could be heard playing classical music softly. As they continued to stand in the entrance, Jack could hardly believe his eyes when he saw an ice sculpture of two swans placed proudly on the table next to a growing pile of gifts._

 _Jack nudged Elizabeth slightly and gestured with his eyes towards that particular table._

" _I don't care what you might think, but that is seemingly over-the-top," Jack told her._

 _Elizabeth only rolled her eyes slightly at the sight of the monstrosity._

" _Honestly!" exclaimed Julie as she breezed past._

" _Julie," Elizabeth admonished with a huff. Julie simply shrugged it off, preferring to head towards the sweets table._

" _Elizabeth," Viola called over to her._

" _Viola, how nice to finally see you," Elizabeth spoke by way of greeting._

" _Yes, well you don't think all of this would just fall into place, do you?" Viola commented as she reached her sister's side. "Constable," she greeted as civilly as she could._

" _Viola, thank you for the invitation to celebrate your engagement," Jack replied._

" _Yes, well…" she brushed him off. "Now Elizabeth, you simply must come and meet Sir Lionel's sister. Oh, and Charles is also wanting to say hello."_

" _Viola, Jack and I were about to get a drink."_

" _Nonsense, I'm sure you can greet Charles first," came Viola's reply._

" _There are some friends I would also like Jack to meet."_

" _Elizabeth, it would be rude not to have a conversation with old family friends. I'm sure the Constable here is able to get your drink," Viola told her with a condescending tone to her voice._

" _Viola! He is not a servant and Jack has a name. You would do well to remember it," Elizabeth replied, shocked that her family could be quite so rude. Turning to Jack, she took his hand, "I do apologise for Viola's behaviour," she told him, sending Viola a disapproving look._

" _Come greet Lionel's family and Charles, Elizabeth," Mrs. Thatcher ordered as she too approached them._

" _Mrs. Thatcher," greeted Jack. "Off you go Elizabeth, I'll be fine. Would you like a drink?"_

" _Jack," Elizabeth implored_

" _Elizabeth, now! The constable will be fine, he even said so," her mother commanded._

 _Elizabeth shot Jack a sorry look as she allowed herself to be swept away by her mother and older sister._

 _Jack headed towards to the punch bowl and once set up with a drink, took a step away to watch the party happen around him. He watched as Elizabeth was introduced to Sir Lionel's family. He smirked slightly to himself as Elizabeth rebuffed Charles' greeting when he attempted to hug her. Jack was proud that she was able to conduct herself firmly by putting Charles into his rightful place. His smirk grew larger as she caught his eye and gave him a special smile._

 _His grin however began to diminish as he caught sight of Mr. Thatcher walking towards him._

 _Jack felt himself being backed up towards the corner by Mr. Thatcher. He tried to look for Elizabeth, only to find her talking to her mother of the other side of the ballroom._

" _Mr Thornton, I would suggest that you take your eyes off my daughter and find yourself a more suitable person," Mr Thatcher commented in the way of a greeting._

 _Jack's back stiffened and senses prickled. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down before beginning to formulate an answer. He had barely any time to open his mouth before Mr. Thatcher continued._

" _As I believe I told you before Constable Thornton, Charles and Elizabeth are good together, they grew up together and have a bond that has stood the test of time," Mr. Thatcher hissed under his breath._

" _Mr. Thatcher, I take you to be a man of great intelligence. Elizabeth has already made her choice, and has turned Charles down. It would be unwise of you to try and control her. You know her better than that. Besides, I believe I have proven myself to be an upstanding man. I've saved your daughters lives, Elizabeth's three times over. I think I deserve a second look from you!" Jack told him, his back straightening and taking a few steps out of the corner.  
_

" _You may think so; however I believe differently. You deserve nothing from me. You will never be good enough for my Elizabeth. She and Charles should be celebrating now…" he was cut off._

" _Father!"_

" _Elizabeth, darling. Constable Thornton and I were just…"_

" _I heard what you think of Jack. How could you speak to the man I love in such a way?" Elizabeth said, sliding her hand into Jack's._

" _Elizabeth, you're barely an adult. What do you know about love?" her father commented._

" _Yet, you were ready to have me married off to Charles? Father how could you honestly believe that he was the right man for me?"_

" _Elizabeth," Mrs. Thatcher's voice joined in. "You are not to speak to your father like that," she admonished._

" _Mrs. Thatcher," Jack began "I am sorry."_

" _You stay out of this," Mr. Thatcher shot back._

" _Father!" Elizabeth's eyes flashed dangerously._

" _Elizabeth Thatcher you are not to make a scene at your sister's engagement party," Mr. Thatcher ordered._

" _Mr. Thatcher, Mrs. Thatcher. I am sorry. However I care for your daughter," Jack began, turning slightly to look at Elizabeth. "Elizabeth is a strong woman who has taken on many challenges in Hope Valley. You have raised a strong, intelligent woman, who knows what she wants. I promise you that whilst I cannot provide her with the means that you are capable of, I will protect her to the best of my abilities," he finished as Elizabeth squeezed his hand._

" _Jack has protected me many times. This is what I want for my life, I want to teach and make a path for myself. Now excuse me, Jack there is someone who I want you to meet…" she finished as she led Jack towards some of her school friends._

" _Accept him, he is a gentleman and genuinely cares for Elizabeth. He stood up to you William," Aunt Agatha commented after the couple had left. "If you don't accept her choices, you may very well lose her."_

 _The Thatchers stood stunned, both unable to form any sentences._

" _Think about it," Agatha finished before walking away._

* * *

 _A while later Jack and Elizabeth found themselves outside, away from the crowds walking towards the back gardens._

" _Your friends seem lovely," Jack commented, taking her hand into his own._

" _Hmm…" came Elizabeth's distracted reply._

" _Elizabeth?"_

 _Elizabeth suddenly came to a stop and pulled Jack towards her, taking a few steps back. Once she was happy, she turned Jack around, his back now towards a brick wall. Her hand snaked up towards his face, fingers beginning to run through his hair as he leaned down to capture her lips._

" _Elizabeth," he pulled back. "We shouldn't do this, it's not right."_

" _Why not? You've seen my knees, remember? I have this memory of you also showing me one of yours!"_

" _Elizabeth!" came his shocked reply. "Someone could see us… Your parents could see us."_

 _Elizabeth smiled slightly, looking up through her eyelashes and shook her head slightly. "We're hidden by that statue over there," she told him pointing over at it._

" _Brought someone here before?" Jack lightly teased._

" _Jack Thornton!" she replied, whacking his arm. "Actually," she began snootily "Julie told me about it."_

" _Well it that case," Jack started as he leaned down again. Without warning, he turned Elizabeth around so her back was now up against the wall. Elizabeth squealed slightly. "I'll just have to keep doing this," as he captured her lips again._

 _Without even realising it, Elizabeth's hands went back up to his hair, messing it slightly as Jack's began to wander over her back. He poured his passion into the kisses._

" _Thank you for standing up for me with your parents," he whispered as they came up for air._

" _I am sorry that I didn't listen to you at the train station. I never understood what Father really thought of you…" Elizabeth replied, tears beginning to form in her eyes._

 _Jack's hand reached up with gently caressed her cheeks and wiped away the tears. "It's okay Elizabeth…We're ok," he told her with a gentle kiss._

" _And what do we have here?" Julie's voice shocked both of them out of their own little world. Both sprang apart, stammering._

" _Julie….I'm sorry. It was…." Jack stammered_

" _Jack. Be grateful that it wasn't our parents," Julie told him with a teasing tone._

 _Jack went as red as the serge that he normally wore._

" _Julie!" Elizabeth said._

" _I was only teasing Elizabeth. Jack, dear you know I was only teasing. I am glad that you have finally found a use for that special spot of mine," Julie told them, a twinkle in her eye. "Come now, I was sent to find you both. Speeches are about to begin," she told them. "Oh and Jack, you may want to brush your hair down," she threw over she shoulder as she walked back towards the house._

 _Jack looked over at Elizabeth, slightly stunned._

" _What just happened?"_

" _Julie," Elizabeth simply said as she began to smooth down his hair. Jack stopped her hand as she pulled away from him and placed a kiss on it._

" _Shall we get this over with?" Jack asked_

 _Elizabeth smiled as she stretched up to place another kiss on his lips._

" _Lets…"_

 _*End Flashback*_

Jack smiled at the memory of Julie finding them together. Life with Elizabeth was never going to be boring, and in turn life with Julie Thatcher as a sister-in-law was never going to be boring either. 'Well,' Jack thought to himself, 'she has to say yes first.'


	4. Meeting Faith

**I've been enjoying everyone's thoughts about the story.**

 **We're over halfway there now people. Not too many chapters left now.**

 **Once again, thank you to everyone who has reviewed the previous chapters. They all make my day.**

 **~Em**

* * *

Jack eased himself up the bed, looking up at the clock. Boy was time moving slowly tonight. He still had plenty of time before dinner. Reaching over to the small table that stood next to his cot, he found his sketch pad and pencils. Flicking open to a blank page, he started to draw from a memory. Starting with the ring claws, his memory flicked back over the time he had even begun to think about finding a ring.

Jack had spent so much time looking at Elizabeth's engagement ring he was sure that he could draw it entirely from memory. Well, he had spent enough time looking for the right ring. The choice at the jewellers had been overwhelming. Thank goodness that Faith had come along.

 _*Flashback*_

 _Jack held the door open to the downtown bistro he had frequented on his trips to Hamilton for Elizabeth._

" _Sorry it's not what you're used to here in Hamilton," he commented as she walked past him. "No white gloves," he joked._

 _Elizabeth smiled slightly._

" _Something different is nice."_

 _Jack smiled, glad that Elizabeth was okay with his choice in dinner places. Ever the gentleman he was, he pulled out the chair for Elizabeth to sit down._

 _Once he sat himself, he reached over to grasp Elizabeth's hand which was resting on the table, as they looked over the menu. Elizabeth looked up, slightly startled._

" _What?" Jack asked innocently. Elizabeth could only shake her head._

" _Now this is more like Abigail's," commented Jack as his thumb rubbed over the back of Elizabeth's hand._

" _Jack!"_

 _The only reply she received was a face full of dimples. She tried to pull her hand away, but Jack's grip was too strong for her._

" _Jack, this isn't appropriate for public!"_

" _No one is watching us, Elizabeth. Everyone is eating. This isn't Hope Valley. No one is paying us any attention."_

" _Jack?" a familiar voice rang out._

" _No one knows us, Jack?" Elizabeth questioned, taking the opportunity whilst Jack being distracted by the voice to remove her hand, albeit reluctantly._

 _Jack turned towards the voice, seemingly familiar, but he just couldn't quite place who it belonged to. His eyes seemed to light up when he finally spotted Faith over by the doorway._

 _He motioned her over, failing to notice that Elizabeth slumped down into her chair slightly._

" _Faith, how are you?" Jack asked, standing up and reaching for her hands, squeezing them slightly._

 _Faith's face broke into a grin and started to reach up to pull him into a hug, but stopped short when he saw who was dinning with him._

" _Jack, I am keeping well. I'm glad to see you. You are looking well. Hope you're here for a more pleasant experience this time," she greeted._

" _Well…" Jack trailed off, sparing Elizabeth a glance. Elizabeth snorted slightly.  
_

" _And you must be Elizabeth," Faith commented turning her attention around. "I've heard so much about you," she gushed._

 _Elizabeth simply raised an eyebrow at Jack, a questioning look on her face._

 _Jack's smile diminished._

 _Faith stopped, looking from Elizabeth to Jack and back again._

" _Oh I am sorry. Jack hasn't been talking out of turn. Tom was talking about you and your family when he was in the infirmary. All good thing, I promise," she explained. "…And besides everyone knows the Thatchers…" she added as an afterthought._

" _I'll bet," Elizabeth muttered under her breath._

 _Jack glanced her way. Elizabeth grimaced slightly and forced a smile onto her face._

" _Won't you join us Miss Carter?" Elizabeth asked, gesturing to an empty chair at the end of the table._

 _Faith looked surprised._

" _Oh no, I didn't mind to intrude on your dinner. I just saw Jack as I walked in and simply wanted to say hello," Faith explained._

" _Please, I'm sure you and Jack have plenty to catch up on," responded Elizabeth._

" _Well if you don't mind," said Faith "I usually eat alone, so the company is most welcomed."_

" _Pleasure is all mine Miss Carter."_

" _Please, Faith. Miss Carter makes me sound like an old school ma'am," Faith told Elizabeth as she took her seat._

 _Cringing immediately as she realised her mistake. "Oh, I am sorry. I did not mean that in a disrespectful way, oh I should go."_

" _Please Faith, wait." Elizabeth reached out to stop the young nurse. "It is fine. Please stay. I would like the chance to get to know the nurse who helped out Jack with Tom. I can only imagine what a handful he must have been."_

 _Jack settled back into his chair as he watched the love of his life start to get to know the young nurse who had befriended him a few months previously._

* * *

 _Faith threw her head back and laughed as Elizabeth continued her story._

" _Well as you know, I am a city girl, never ridden a horse in my life. So Jack, in his true knight in shining armour way, decided that if I was going to live on the western frontier I needed to learn how to ride. So here I was standing in front of this monster…"_

" _Also known as my Mountie issued horse, Taylor," supplied Jack, stirring his cup of coffee._

" _Yes, Taylor, huge beast of a horse. Well there I am standing on next to the horse, no idea of how I am going to get up into the saddle. Then without warning Jack's picked me up, by the waist, and thrown me up and into the saddle," finished Elizabeth._

" _I wouldn't have called it 'thrown'," protested Jack._

" _And tell me Constable Thornton, what would you have called it?" questioned Elizabeth._

" _It was more of a helping hand," confirmed Jack._

 _Faith suppressed a giggle. "Well there never seems to be a dull moment in Hope Valley," she commented. "Well I must go," she told them, looking up at the clock. "I am due on duty for a night shift. It was lovely to see you again Jack and to meet you Elizabeth. Please do pass on my regards to Tom when you see him."_

" _You too Faith. We simply must catch up again, it has been lovely getting to know you. We are only in Hamilton for another day, but next time we should organise something. And I should introduce you to Julie, then you can put a face to that name that Tom has been telling you all about," Elizabeth told her._

" _Sounds lovely Elizabeth…Jack," Faith farewelled as she left._

 _Jack stood and offered a hand to Elizabeth._

" _Care for a walk?" inquired Jack._

 _The night air outside was crisp causing Elizabeth to pull her jacket slightly tighter around herself. Jack noticed and pulled her closer to himself as they walked towards the city park._

" _I never said thank you for last night," started Jack_

" _What for?"_

" _For standing up to your family like you did. I know that we were finally getting back on track after our conversation in the mine. But I was worried about coming back to Hamilton and facing your family again."_

" _Oh, Jack… I meant all those things I said to you. I just didn't understand how much you had been hurt and caught by my actions," Elizabeth told him as they came to a stop next to a park bench._

 _Elizabeth waited until they had both sat down before continuing._

 _"Jack I wanted to apologise for that dinner at the Regency Club, many months ago. What I see now is that you were right at the time. I was spending too much time alone with Charles, and you had every right to have dinner with Faith, especially as she was trying to help you and Tom. What I didn't see then was the fact that I was jealous. At that point, you were right, you had never questioned my friendship with Charles, even though I understand now you could have. It did not matter that Charles was an old friend. It was inappropriate for me to spend that much time alone with a friend, whilst being courted by another. I was hurt that you had never mentioned Faith to me..."_

 _"Elizabeth. I..." Jack interrupted, taking her hand._

 _Elizabeth held up a finger._

 _"No, I need to say this... I may have said at that time that I had never given you any reason not to trust me and in my mind I didn't think that I had. But now I understand that my actions spoke louder than my words. I understand that Faith was only trying to help. I didn't understand to what extent that you thought that my family was trying to control you. Last night at the engagement party, opened my eyes to a whole new understanding. What I said in Hope Valley about the opportunity that my father was presenting to you, you were right to stand your ground and not take it. Your calling is as a Mountie, not as an executive in my father's company. They will need to accept you for the man you are, not the man that they want you to be. And I am sorry that I did not realise this sooner. I am glad that you had Faith in your corner and she was able to help Tom. I am only sorry that I wasn't able to realise this sooner. It's only that Viola came home and mentioned that she had seen you and Faith having dinner together. And I was hurt. The way she said it and the insinuations that came along with it, I was wrong not to trust you. All I could feel was hurt and untrusted as you had never mentioned her before. Viola knew this, and played on my confused feelings. She wanted me to be more like her, marry for social standing. And I have spent many a night wondering if she will ever love Sir Lionel. As Julie says 'she's in love with his title, and he's in love with her money'. Now I feel sorry for her, for she does not know true love. Thank you for being true to me and understanding me. And for opening my eyes to a whole different part of Hamilton. And for introducing me to Faith, I look forward to spending more time with her. Now that I have met her I understand why she would remind you to be true to yourself."_

 _Jack had no words for her. He simply pulled her close and placed a kiss on her lips._

" _Jack," Elizabeth protested weakly as she drew back slightly. "We're in public."_

 _Jack's hand slipped behind her head, not allowing her to escape. He rested his forehead against her's._

" _I don't care Elizabeth Thatcher. What you just told me, that is so important to me. I am so glad that we're finally on the same page," he finished before kissing her again._

* * *

 _Jack stood by the front door of the infirmary glancing at his pocket watch for the tenth time. He tapped his foot impatiently, he only had a limited time before he was supposed to meet Elizabeth at the train station to head home._

" _Finally," he said when Faith walked through the entry way._

" _Jack? What are you doing here?" she questioned._

" _I need help. A woman's touch," he embarrassingly admitted._

" _And Elizabeth doesn't have a feminine touch?"_

" _I need help buying a ring for Elizabeth," Jack told her, tugging on her sleeve. "And hurry along. I need to catch a train soon."_

 _Faith laughed slightly as she hurried to catch up to Jack._

" _Any ideas what you might like to buy for Elizabeth?"_

" _Well Tom suggested something flashy and red, which is why I have not taken up his offer to come shopping with me. And when I saw you last night, I had a flash that you might be able to help me," Jack told her as they stopped outside a jewellery store._

 _Stepping inside Jack began to feel overwhelmed. Each and every way he looked, he saw different types of rings. It just confirmed to him what he already knew, he had no idea what he could possible get for Elizabeth._

" _Jack," Faith called softly._

 _Jack turned to face her, a confused look on his face._

" _Okay, let's have a think about what you do not want," Faith told him, waving away the assistant coming towards them._

" _Process of elimination?"_

 _Jack smiled._

* * *

 _40 minutes later, they had discarded many, many rings. Three stones, halo cuts, paved rings and many coloured gems._

" _Jack, what about something like this?" Faith asked, as she held up a ring that the assistant had passed out to her._

 _The ring that Faith held up, had a sapphire set in the middle, surrounded by twelve smaller diamonds._

 _Jack came closer to inspect it, taking it into his own hands, his brow furrowed._

" _It's nice, but it's not Elizabeth," he trailed off and squinted at the case next to them._

 _Jack had finally stumbled on the perfect ring. It was a_ _beautifully handmade diamond platinum filigree ring_. _The center stone was an Old European cut diamond and accenting the center stone were four single cut diamonds_ _._

" _That one," he told Faith and the assistant. "That's the one for my Elizabeth!"_

 _*End Flashback*_

Jack lent back to admire his drawing. He had made a good start on the top part of the ring. Soon he hoped he would be able to place the real thing where it belonged. Sighing he leant back again.

* * *

 **If you want to see a picture of the ring that Faith picked out, I have a link on my blog. The link is in my profile :)**


	5. Disagreement

**So it's Thursday again which means update day! Depending how my last week of school goes I'm actually hoping to get the next chapter up early.**

 **In the meantime, enjoy the next chapter and again thank you for all your reviews**

 **Em**

* * *

Jack sat back, pencils lying next to himself as he completed some shading on his sketch. He loved doing this, it wasn't taxing on his mind. Something to enjoy whilst he waited for Elizabeth. An activity that he could imagine himself doing whilst Elizabeth was marking school work at their dining room table.

That thought stopped him in his tracks. He hadn't given that much thought to where they might live. Hope Valley was his career post and he enjoyed being out here now. He knew that Elizabeth would likely feel the same way, a feeling that Hope Valley was 'home'. Allowing himself to daydream slightly more, he visualised the place that they might call home. Elizabeth was sitting at a desk with papers marking them. His paintings adorning the walls, Rip laying on a rug next to the fire. His Mountie issued black jacket hanging next to his red serge by the front door.

The thought of the red serge hanging made his mind take a different track. Whilst their courtship had been filled with ups and downs, more ups than downs, that sometimes blasted red serge had likely caused one of their bigger quarrels.

 _*Flashback*_

 _Elizabeth was attempting to wait as patiently as she could. She was tapping her foot on the stage coach platform where she had been sitting, enjoying some sunlight and fresh air as she spotted Jack riding back into town, smiling as he tipped his hat to her. Elizabeth thought to herself that she would go over to the jail and surprise Jack soon._

 _When Jack had finally walked around to the jail, she had been surprised when he didn't look for her. Rather he just slipped into the jail._

 _Tapping her foot another few times, she spotted Rosemary and Lee exiting the Saloon. It was time to go and find Jack, not really wanting to speak to either of them; she just wasn't in the mood._

 _And it was nothing new for Elizabeth to just knock and let herself in. It had been a long week at school, where she had been fighting with herself over what needed to be taught and what could wait for a later time. Knowing that some summer weather would be coming along soon, she knew that she would be able to complete more science lessons outside. Couple that with the fact that Jack had been away for a few days in Rock Creek, meant she was eager to see him._

 _So into the jail she went and what greeted her stopped her dead in her tracks._

 _Originally what had stopped her was the state of Jack's room. His red serge tunic had been seemingly hastily discarded on the floor and his high brown boots had been kick off and away towards the fire place. On his desk was his side-arm, still in its leather case along with his riding gloves. His Mountie issued Stetson, which was usually hung on a hook near the door had been carelessly tossed on a nearby chair. Elizabeth's eyes wandered over to Jack's cot where she could see that his Sam Brown belt and strap had been discarded._

 _Her eyes continued to wander and widened slightly when they finally reached Jack. Apart from his breeches all Jack had on was his blue undershirt, and it was completely unbuttoned. His suspenders had been pulled off his shoulders and were hanging loose by his jodhpurs._

 _Jack was holding aside his undershirt, exposing part of his stomach and side. He was currently trying to wipe at his skin, where she could see that part of his skin was an angry red colour._

" _Jack!" Elizabeth gasped, slightly breathless._

 _Jack stunned, whipped around. "Elizabeth! You can't be in here. It's not right!"_

 _If either of them had been in the right frame of mind, they would have laughed at their role reversal. It was usually Elizabeth reminding him about the appropriateness of their situations._

 _However Jack's voice hadn't seemed to have reached Elizabeth, she was too busy, eyes fixed on Jack's opened shirt._

 _Jack noticed and hurriedly closed his shirt, bunching the material shut with his hands._

" _Elizabeth!" he called again. "Outside? Please."_

 _Elizabeth shook her head slightly to bring herself out of the fog she was in. Going slightly red, she started to back up towards the door._

" _I'm just going…" she muttered, motioning towards the door, as she walked into a chair, knocking it to the floor._

" _Oh," she muttered reaching down for it._

 _Jack reached out for her, trying to stabilize her, before she fell._

 _Elizabeth went even redder at his touch._

" _Jack," she breathed, touching his collar, beginning to trail her fingertips across his collarbone. Shaking her head slightly again, "No!" she told him, pushing him away slightly. "I should…" she said pointing at the door again._

" _I'll be out in a minute," Jack told her._

 _Elizabeth barely nodded, unable to look him in the face, before closing the door firmly behind her._

 _Hand outstretch Elizabeth started to feel for the chair behind herself, she didn't trust herself to look down for it. Finally, her hand met the wood of the arm and she took a seat on the porch outside the jail. Using a hand, she fanned herself slightly. She had always known that Jack was a handsome man and what she had just witnessed had given her extra proof of that. Not that watching him chop wood wasn't proof enough._

" _Imagine what it might feel like," Elizabeth muttered to herself. Just for a moment Elizabeth allowed herself to image what it might be like to be married to Jack. She felt herself become even redder and fanned slightly faster with her hand._

" _Stop it Elizabeth, you aren't anywhere near marriage. He hasn't asked you yet. Nor has he even spoken about it," she told herself out loud._

 _"Haven't we spoken about this talking to yourself business?" Jack commented as he walked out. "Not a good sign."_

 _Elizabeth looked up, slightly glum at Jack's fully clothed body, all traces of his Mountie uniform gone._

" _Jack! What was going on? Did you hurt yourself? Do you need to see someone? The doctor perhaps?" Elizabeth asked, the panic audible in her voice._

 _Jack knelt down and took Elizabeth's hand into his own._

 _"Elizabeth," he gently started. "It was nothing…Nothing to be worried about," he told her, reaching up to brush a stray hair away from her face._

" _Jack!" she warned slightly._

" _Elizabeth it's just Mountie work. I'm fine. I'm right here, in front of you…fine."_

 _"Jack Thornton!" Elizabeth said exasperatedly, her voice beginning to rise._

 _Jack looked around, they were starting to gather looks from the passers-by on the street. He stood, gently tugging Elizabeth to her feet too and started to pull her towards the door. This was not a conversation that everyone needed to hear, rather one that needed to be held inside between the two of them._

 _Once inside, Elizabeth's hands started to paw at Jack's shirt trying to feel around and find out what was wrong._

" _Elizabeth," Jack said. "Stop!" he commanded, grabbing her roaming hands._

 _Elizabeth frowned at him. Dropping her hands, Jack leaned up against the side of his desk._

 _"Elizabeth look, I'm fine. See for yourself, I'm here."_

 _"I am looking Jack, and look around," she told him gesturing towards the uniform that was still strewn around the jail. "And this doesn't look like nothing."_

 _"I am fine," Jack insisted, pushing himself off the desk and taking Elizabeth into his arms and pressing a kiss onto her forehead. Elizabeth noted that he was angling his left side of his body away from the hug._

 _"We said that we were going to work on our communication and make our relationship work more," Elizabeth told him, pulling away slightly. "And this isn't going to work, especially if you are going to keep telling me that everything is fine and its clearly not!"_

 _"Elizabeth I've told you before that I'm good at what I do and sometimes a Mountie's work is dangerous. I'm just not at liberty to tell you about it. You have to understand that," he reaffirmed as he let her go, to move back towards his desk. "Now I've got a mountain of paperwork to get through, I just need some time to do this and then we can talk."_

 _"No Jack, you don't just get to tell me that I have to leave this," her voice hardening. "And you can't just hide behind your uniform and paperwork."_

 _Jack flinched slightly at the voice that he called her 'Miss Thatcher teacher's voice'._

 _Elizabeth didn't allow him any time to respond, she only turned on her heel, marched out of the jail and closed the door behind her, rather loudly._

 _Jack sank down into his chair, wincing slightly as he did so. Sighing, he picked up a pencil to start on his report. Better to leave Elizabeth to cool down and give himself time too. They could both be hot-headed and this way he wouldn't say something he might regret later._

 _Elizabeth on the other hand had stormed over to the café, through the parlour and up the stairs towards her room. She managed to avoid Abigail, Clara and any customers. In a huff, she sat down on her bed._

' _What had Jack been thinking?' she questioned to herself. Elizabeth had thought she had made peace with Jack's dangerous job months ago. The conversation that had taken place in the mine had gone a long way to comforting her._

 _She didn't want to change Jack. This was his calling and she respected that, but she wanted him to confide in her, tell her what was going on. Their conversation had shaken her and brought back those deep hidden fears. Whilst she thought that she was strong enough to accept the dangers of Jack's job, doubts began to to creep into her mind. Would she be able to cope? Would she be able to sleep at night when Jack was away? Was her family right? Maybe she wasn't cut out to be a Mountie's wife. With that thought, a tear slowly began to make its way down her cheek._

 _As she brushed it away, her mind took a different turn. What would the alternative be? A life without Jack? Wouldn't that be even harder? Deep inside she knew that she had the strength to keep going. Elizabeth reached for her journal and began to write all the confusing thought from her mind down._

 _A few hours later, Jack knocked on the back door to the café that led into the kitchen. A few moments later Abigail opened the door._

" _Ah, Jack," she greeted. "I believe Elizabeth might be in her room. Although I would have thought she might have been spending time with you, since you've been away," Abigail mused._

" _Well about that…" Jack started._

 _Abigail simply raised an eyebrow and wordlessly turned to the coffee port and poured two cups._

" _You better come with me," she told him, motioning with her head towards the café tables._

" _How did you know?" Jack asked incredulously as he started on his coffee._

" _The look in your eyes Jack," Abigail told him. "What did you do this time?"_

 _Jack started to protest, only to be silenced from a knowing look on Abigail's face._

" _Elizabeth just doesn't know when to let go of things," he started. "I know she's worried about me getting hurt…"_

" _Jack, put yourself in her shoes for a moment…" Abigail got no further in her sentence before Jack interrupted her._

" _She needs to understand that I can't always tell her everything," he huffed._

" _Jack," Abigail started again. "Give her some time."_

" _We've been through this Abigail. We've had this conversation. She knows that I have a job to do, I thought she understood."_

" _Give her time Jack," Abigail repeated. "You have said yourself that she needs time to adjust. This is a very different life than she is used to leading."_

" _And maybe it's not the life she wants to lead," he fired back crossly._

" _Jack Thornton! How could you?" Elizabeth's startled voice came from the stairway._

 _Jack looked over at her, guilt written all over his face._

" _When have I ever given you any reason to believe that I didn't want to be here?" she said bitterly._

 _Abigail silently rose from her chair, collecting the cups as she went._

" _Perhaps you would be both more comfortable in the parlour," she commented. "I'll be at the mercantile if you need me," she concluded._

 _Jack hurried to his feet as Elizabeth descended down the stairs. She barely gave him a passing glance and ignored his hand that he offered to her._

 _Reaching the the parlour she sat and stiffened slightly as Jack came close to sit also._

" _I think you can sit over there," she told him coldly, pointing at an armchair across the room._

 _Jack sighed and dejectedly moved himself._

" _Elizabeth…" he started._

" _How could you Jack?" tears beginning to form in her eyes._

 _Jack made a move to comfort her._

" _No, Constable Thornton. You don't get to say things like that and then think that everything is fine."_

" _Constable Thornton? Since when are we back to that?"_

" _Since you decided to question whether or not I have the staying power. I've told you before I can take care of myself, I don't need you. And you're flattering yourself if you think that you're the only reason that I'm staying here in Hope Valley!" Elizabeth began to regret the words, as soon as they left her lips._

 _Jack's eyes flashed dangerously._

" _Well if that's the case, I'll leave you to take care of your own stubbed toes," Jack retorted. "Good afternoon, Miss Thatcher." Jack rose and left Elizabeth in tears._

 _Jack paused outside the door, his hand still on the door knob. He could hear Elizabeth sobbing softly._

 _Steading his nerves, he tore himself away from the door and a crying Elizabeth. More than once he turned back towards the door, knowing he wanted nothing more than to comfort her. But he knew that he needed a good night's sleep first. Knowing if he went back in now, he'd only make things worse._

 _With that in mind, he started towards the jailhouse again, his heart breaking a little more in the process._

 _*End Flashback*_

Jack looked down at his pencil. He had pressed so hard that the lead had snapped. He always loved his job, nothing was ever going to change that. But the start of this particular argument had meant that he now viewed it in a completely different light. He had begun to view everything in a new light. Even now he regretted the words he had spoken that day. He had never meant to hurt her, the words had just come out. He still had plenty to learn about being in a courtship with Elizabeth Thatcher.


	6. Fixing mistakes

**Hi Hearties... I had these grand plans to update sooner, but it just wasn't meant to be. I haven't been in the best of health and my Year 12's have their last day at school tomorrow before their mock and then final exams, so it's been a little crazy over my way.**

 **Anyways... Here is the second to last chapter. I do hope you enjoy it and as always thank you all for your reviews.**

 **Em**

* * *

Jack didn't bother looking for his pencil sharpener; rather he switched over to another pencil. Looking down at his sketch again, he ran a fingertip over the base of the ring, smudging the lines slightly. He was lucky that he hadn't managed to put a hole into the paper after breaking the lead.

The time following their quarrel hadn't been a pleasant time. It had been a sleepless night for Jack, but he knew that it was best to leave Elizabeth alone. What Jack hadn't counted on was a telegraph in the morning that would take him away from Hope Valley for a week. And if he thought that the night after the quarrel was bad, he found that every night he was away from Elizabeth made for a slightly harder night's sleep.

 _*Flashback*_

 _Knowing that Elizabeth wasn't going to be awake when he left, he wrote a note and slipped it under the back door of the café ready to be found when Abigail or Elizabeth came down._

 _Dearest Elizabeth,_

 _I cannot begin to express my apology for last night. I know now that I should not have walked out on you. You were right; we need to talk to make us work._

 _Unfortunately, I have been called away on Mountie business for the week. Please know that I would have liked to clear everything up before I left, but this was unavoidable. I am sorry that I was not able to see you before I left._

 _Know that I am sorry and wish to talk to you. Stay safe, I will see you soon._

 _All my heart,_

 _Jack_

 _When Jack rode back into Hope Valley a week later, he was greeted with a severe storm. There were very few people on Main Street, most taking shelter inside. A clap of thunder brought him back to his senses and he hurried off to stables to cool down his horse, Taylor._

 _Even when he made a mad dash towards the jail, Jack still got soaked to the bone. Looking around the small jail, he made himself comfortable, changed into a clean, dry uniform and thought about what he was going to say to Elizabeth. He had had plenty of time over the past week to think about what he was going to say. These were just problems that they were going to have to work through and learn how to work through. He could only imagine how annoyed Elizabeth would be and likely how resistant she would be towards anything he might say._

 _Getting up, he leaned a forearm at the window to watch the pouring rain. Content to just watch, he stood there for a good ten minutes before he decided that it was too wet to go over to see Elizabeth. Waiting just a little bit longer would be okay, no matter how anxious he was to see her right now._

 _It was an empty street, almost like a ghost town. He hadn't seen a storm come through like this even in Hope Valley. Even the storm that had trapped him and Elizabeth wasn't anywhere near as this was shaping up to be._

 _Sighing again, he sat himself down at his typewriter. Fingers poised over the keys, he struggled to type his report that needed to be submitted to his superiors. As much as he knew that it needed to be done, his mind kept going back to Elizabeth. Was he right to say what he did to Elizabeth? Maybe he should have gone back into the café that night, but then again he wasn't to know that he was going to be called away the next morning._

 _What was it going to be like when they got married? Would they even get to that point? A week ago, Jack would not have even questioned that this was the woman that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, he even had the ring. But the way that Elizabeth reacted to that little scratch, he wasn't sure of anything anymore._

 _Once again, the idea that Mounties would be issued with wives if they were to have one, was rearing its ugly head. Jack shook his head trying to rid himself of that thought. His father was a married Mountie and had a successful marriage. His parents' marriage was one that he had admired, especially when he took a step back and thought back on it._

 _He thought back over his parents' marriage for a moment. It had never been perfect, he was sure of that, as young as he was at the time. There were evenings around the dining table that had been tense, not that he or Tom had picked up on it at the time. Any time that his father had been injured at work, his mother always had a brave face in front of her sons. They were simply told that Pa had been hurt doing brave Mountie work, and questions had never really asked, nothing more than innocent young children's questions. Obviously his father and mother had shielded the two young boys from any problems that may have been happening and dealt with it on their own. Jack supposed that this was something that he and Elizabeth would need to learn how to do._

 _Then it hit him; this hiding of injuries wasn't going to be able to be continued when he and Elizabeth were married. It had been easy enough before, in the few times that he had been injured, he would just patch himself up and not say a word to Elizabeth. That wasn't fair. She was right, if they were going to have any kind of relationship they needed to be honest. If she was going to be married to a Mountie, she also needed to know what her life was going to be like married to said Mountie. And on his part, whilst he couldn't talk about the specifics about everything that happened, he did need to explain the bones of what had happened. Otherwise it just was not fair on Elizabeth. He couldn't just ask her to blindly accept everything._

 _Without warning, there was a knock on the door shaking Jack from his thoughts. Abigail came bursting through the door, umbrella all out of joint from the weather._

" _Jack!" she barely managed to get out_

" _Abigail? What are you doing out in this weather?" Jack got up hurriedly from behind his desk, reaching out for her._

 _Abigail paused, trying to catch her breath. "Jack," she started again. "It's Elizabeth."_

 _Jack stopped in his tracks. "Elizabeth? What's happened Abigail?" the worry evident in his voice._

" _She hasn't come back from school. She might just be at the school waiting for the storm to pass, but it's getting late and I'm worried. All the children are home, but she isn't yet."_

" _Don't worry Abigail," Jack started as he reached for his longer stockman's jacket, rather than his thick black Mountie jacket. "I'll head out to the school and see if she's waiting there. I'm sure everything is okay," he finished as he headed for the door._

" _Jack!" Abigail reached for his arm as he passed. "Here's Elizabeth's thick jacket, she might need it in this weather."_

 _Jack barely smiled as he started for the wild weather outside._

 _It was a hard ride out to the school, normally a nice gentle ride for Taylor much harder since Jack was struggling to see in front of him. He would have been lucky to see a foot in front of him. Pausing slightly near the school, Jack squinted at the building. He was sure that he could see some trees had fallen onto the building._

" _Elizabeth," he whispered to himself, as he urged Taylor to gallop a little faster towards the school building._

 _Swing off the horse as he reached the school, he noticed that indeed a few tall trees had managed to fall onto the building with a few windows on one side of the building been broken in. Grabbing his bag from the horse, he made his way up the stairs toward the front door._

 _Throwing open the door, his eyes searched frantically for signs of the school teacher. "Elizabeth?" he called out hopefully._

" _Constable Thornton!" came the cold reply._

 _Jack's head snapped towards the direction of the voice. There he found Elizabeth curled up near the fire place, towards the corner away from the glass, cradling her arm slightly._

" _Elizabeth," he said rushing towards her. "Are you okay? What happened?"_

 _Elizabeth looked at him stiffly. "I am fine, thank you."_

 _Jack looked at her strangely. He knelt down beside her and reached for her arm. "May I?_

 _Elizabeth withdrew from him slightly. "No, you may not," she told him, pulling her arm out of his reach._

" _Elizabeth?"_

 _Elizabeth stood up and hobbled towards her desk, allowing Jack a chance to notice that her right arm had a gash and was bleeding slightly. Jack got up and started to go after her. He was just about to place his hand on her back when she turned around to face him._

" _I don't need your help Constable Thornton," she warned him._

 _Jack allowed her to take a few steps away from him and reach her desk. Watching her attempt to sit down, he removed his own jacket and placed it over one of the pews._

" _Elizabeth?" he questioned. "What happened?"_

" _Oh you want to know now?" she questioned coldheartedly. "A week ago I asked the same question and was ignored."_

 _The penny dropped for Jack; this is what it was like to have the shoe on the other foot._

" _Elizabeth…" he started as he cautiously started towards the desk. "Just let me look at your arm and then we can talk."_

 _Elizabeth scoffed at him._

" _If you think that you can just show up here and act like nothing has happened. You wouldn't let me do anything about what happened to you and just expect me to accept it all. You don't have the right."_

" _Elizabeth, your arm…" Jack pointed out._

" _You walked out on me!" she accused._

" _I know, and I shouldn't have," Jack gently told her as he reached her. "But Elizabeth I am sorry and we can talk about all of it later, but first please, let me look at your arm…Please," he beseeched her._

 _Elizabeth sighed and allowed Jack to take her arm._

" _It doesn't look too deep. I'm just going to clean it and put a bandage on, is that okay?"_

 _Elizabeth nodded, almost motionlessly._

 _Jack reached for his bag that he had placed on the table and withdraw the supplies he needed._

 _Elizabeth drew a sharp breath as he started to clean the wound._

" _Sorry," he said. "I'm being as gentle as I can. Luckily there isn't any glass embedded in your arm."_

 _Nothing more was said until Jack had finished bandaging Elizabeth's arm._

" _There, done. Are you cold?" he asked reaching for her jacket. "Abigail sent this with me."_

" _I'm fine, I might just go sit by the stove."_

" _Okay," he replied, standing and reaching to help her. Elizabeth pulled away from his touch._

" _I can get there perfectly well by myself, thank you."_

 _Jack groaned as he watched Elizabeth make her way towards the fire. He knew this was going to be hard conversation, but hadn't counted on Elizabeth being quite so cold._

" _Elizabeth, I am sorry. It was wrong of me to walk out on you that night. I regretted it the moment that I did it, but we both said things we shouldn't have. I've been worried about you this whole week."_

" _Jack, you told me that you couldn't tell me what happened to you. But you still think it's okay for you to be worried about me? And you want to know what happened to me? You expect me to tell you everything."_

" _Elizabeth I know that keeping things from you is wrong, but I cannot take back what has already been done. Listen Elizabeth, I am sorry. It's just sometimes you're so stubborn about everything. You just need to know everything."_

" _Stubborn," she said screeching slightly._

" _And it's a quality that I admire about you. I'm sorry what else can I do?_ _You know you rub me the wrong way sometimes."_

" _Jack, you questioned my feelings for you, how could you do that?"_

 _Jack felt his temper begin to rise again. He took a deep breath before starting again. "I admit that may not have been the right thing to say in the heat of the moment. But I do remember you telling me not to flatter myself about you staying in Hope Valley."_

" _Jack…" Elizabeth gasped slightly._

" _Elizabeth, I know we both said things in the heat of the moment, that we both regret now, well I know I regret what I said," Jack told her hopefully._

 _Elizabeth looked down, tears starting to form._

" _I shouldn't have said that either Jack. It wasn't true," Elizabeth confessed._

 _Jack took a seat on the floor next to Elizabeth._

" _Elizabeth, I've had plenty of time to think over the past week… You do want to know everything. I understand that now and when Abigail came over to the jail earlier and said that you weren't home, there was nothing else I could do but come and find you. I was so worried about you, I needed to know what was going on, were you safe? Were you hurt? What had happened? I now know that this must be what you're feeling when I'm not here. When you wouldn't tell me what had happened, it was like you had slapped me in the face, that you didn't trust me. That's what I did to you and for that I am sorry," he told her, starting to scoot slightly closer and Elizabeth didn't resist this time._

" _I cannot ask you to forgive me enough. I was wrong to walk out on you. I was wrong not to tell you what had happened. I've realised that my parents made their marriage work whilst Pa was a Mountie and I want that life for us," he told her._

 _Elizabeth gasped slightly._

" _I'm not asking you anything right now Elizabeth, but I want you to know what you are opening your life up to. My job is dangerous, it's unpredictable and I won't be home all the time. I can't share everything about what is happening with cases, but I promise you that if something happens to me, no matter how small, I will tell you about it. You are a strong person and you deserve me to be honest with you."_

 _Elizabeth looked up, tears in her eyes._

" _Really, Jack?"_

" _Really," he sincerely told her, gathering her up in his arms._

" _I've told you before that there are not guarantees in life. I am good at what I do, but I need you in my life Elizabeth Thatcher," he whispered as he pressed a kiss onto her forehead._

 _Pulling back slightly, he looked down at her. "Can you walk on that leg or will you need help?"_

" _It's just a bit sore. It buckled underneath me when the tree broke the window," she revealed._

 _Jack chuckled softly. "Can't leave you anywhere alone," he teased._

" _Jack!" she huffed._

 _Jack just pressed a kiss to her head. "Never mind. We'll just have to stay here a bit longer, together, doing a little less talking."_

" _Well they do say that the best part of arguing is making up," Elizabeth reminded him, playing with the gold buttons on his jacket._

 _Jack didn't even bother with a reply before pulling her closer._

 _Stopping a few moments later to catch his breath, he reached a hand across to cup her cheek, using his thumb to wipe away the tears that had begun pooling in her eyes._

 _Placing his forehead against Elizabeth's, he snaked his other hand to the nape of her neck playing with the fine strands of her hair._

" _I love you Elizabeth," he whispered as he watched her eyelids flutter close and he leant down to kiss her again._

 _*End Flashback*_

Jack placed the sketch down on the table next him, completed. He couldn't believe how much Elizabeth had shaped his thinking and changed his outlook on life and on the Mounties too.

Looking over at the clock again, he decided that he could get up now and go find Elizabeth. She should have finished packing for Hamilton by now. He had an important question to ask her now and he was ready.


	7. The Proposal

**A huge thank you to AngelStreets, bbflabradors, Mary Jo, Bobbi Bindings, LisaNY, Cheylin Boston, mp511cole, lsockett, FicFanChick, Heartie, Cass Pine, Pink Elephant5, Yvonne and all of the guests who left reviews for me. I have enjoyed reading each and every one of the reviews. Thank you all for your kind words. Thank you for embracing the flashback style of writing and letting me know this, it helped my confidence.**

 **And for accepting me into the Heartie community and encouraging me with my writing. I don't think I have ever seen anything like it, so warm and welcoming.**

 **And most importantly to the lovely LisaNY - who has pre-read and edited every chapter, which I most definitely needed, and then still reviews everything. I apologise Lisa for all the very raw writing you received from me. And for helping me develop the idea that I had and fleshing it out, picking me up when I was ready to stop writing and just being an ear at the end a message at anytime of the day. And when you're on the other side of the world, literally it may have been anytime of the day. I can't thank you enough.**

* * *

Glancing up at the clock, Jack decided it was time. Easing himself up and off the cot, he placed the sketch pad onto his bedside table. After one last glance at his finished sketch, he brushed down his pants.

Bending down to stoke the fire, he watched the flames flick around the stove for a few minutes allowing himself a moment or two to think about what he was about to do. He was about to change his life completely, even though at one point in his life, he had believed that if Mounties had wanted him to have a wife, they would have issued with him one. Smirking slightly to himself, he looked down to scratch Rip behind the ears.

"Wish me luck, Rip."

The lazy dog simply looked up at his master with wide eyes.

Jack shook his head slightly as he moved around to his desk to retrieve the precious dark blue box. He tugged at the drawer and found it locked, he couldn't remember even locking it. Tapping his pockets, he couldn't feel the key at all. He slipped his hands into the pockets to find them both empty, even after he turned them inside out.

Turning around to search through the papers on his desk, pages started to flutter off the desk, but there was no key to be found on the desk. Jack felt his heart start to quicken when he realised that he wasn't sure where he had even left the key. He continued to search around his desk hoping that it might magically appear.

He scurried over to his jacket which was hanging near his bed and systemically started going through the pockets within his red serge. Nothing!

Jack huffed as he sat down on the edge of his bed, patting his pockets again, hoping that the silver key might suddenly appear.

"Come on Thornton," he told him, his eyes scanning the room. "You're a member of the Royal North Western Mounted Police and you see things that people miss all the time."

Scanning over the various clothes he had hung up. The key wasn't in his tunic, wasn't in the pants that he currently wore. In no other articles of clothing could it be in. Where could he possibly have put it? This was maddening to Jack.

Jack huffed again, as if he wasn't nervous enough, but right now he couldn't even get to the engagement ring. His frustration was reaching a breaking point as he rubbed his hands over his face. His elbows rested on his knees, and face fell forward. And there he stayed for a few agonizing minutes.

Looking up at his desk, he saw a flash of silver. Brow furrowed, he moved towards the desk. He ran his hand over the lip of the desk drawer and bent down where he came face to face with a small silver key, still in the lock hole. Smiling slightly to himself, he couldn't believe that this whole time that the key was right there.

Once the box was on the desk, Jack threw the key into the drawer, there was no need for it to be locked now. Straightening his back up he flicked open the top of the box. Pausing slightly, he ran his thumb over the high set diamond, reflecting on what he was going to do.

Never would he have thought that this was going to be his life. He began to wonder what his life would have been like if he had been posted to Cape Fullerton. He never had thought that he would have taken his career posting here in Hope Valley, nor would he have ever imagined how busy his life would be as a Mountie on the Western Frontier. He had courted adventure and wanted a life where he would be chasing dangerous criminals, he had never wanted to be a baby-sitter. And when he had been posted here, that's exactly what he thought he had been sent to do. It would have never gone through his mind that he could court the woman he thought wouldn't last a month on a diet of coal dust.

Now he was about to propose marriage to a high class society woman. Elizabeth Thatcher had changed his life and everything was about to change, for the better.

Snapping the box shut, he pocketed the item into an inner pocket of the blue suit jacket. Smiling to himself, yet again, he buttoned up the top of his jacket buttons as he reached for the door. With one last glance down at Rip, he nodded slightly as he shut the door behind himself.

With a slight bounce in his step as he walked, Jack landed with a slight jump on the dusty main road. The closer he got to Abigail's café, the more nervous he became, his steps started to slow.

"Thornton, you've faced dangerous criminals!" he muttered to himself. "This is asking the woman that you love to spend the rest of her life with you. You know that you have some of her family supporting you. At the end of the day, she loves you Thornton, and that's all that matters," he continued as he made his way over to the private side of the café. Slowly he eased the door open, listening to the laughter that came from within.

Leaning up against the doorway, he smiled to himself as he took in the scene in front of him. Elizabeth was running around the sitting room, packing her clothes into a suitcase, Clara was sitting mending an article of clothing, Rosemary was sitting with a cup of tea whilst Abigail regaled them all with a story involving herself, Pastor Frank and a walk in the park.

Jack drew back slightly. He had never really found out what had transpired between Abigail and Bill Avery, and it was not any of his business. He knew that Elizabeth had more of an understanding. Bill had returned to Hamilton and last he had heard was that Bill was working within divisional headquarters. He had noticed that Abigail had been spending more time with Pastor Frank Hogan. The pastor seemed to be a gentleman who respected all the townspeople of Hope Valley, and for that Jack was grateful. However something deep down didn't quite sit right with him about Frank, but for now it wasn't that Jack was ready to explore…Just yet. Rather he had a more pressing matter to attend to.

"And why Jack Thornton, don't you look like you have something on your mind," Rosemary sang out to him.

Startled out of his thoughts, Jack looked up to find everyone in the room, bar Elizabeth, looking at him expectantly.

"Well?" Rosemary questioned.

Jack raised an eyebrow at her, without saying a word.

"Well, what is it you have on your mind?" she continued.

Jack struggled for an answer, he stood there for a moment, mouth slightly agape.

Abigail laughed to herself slightly. "Jack, would you like to come in and have a cup of coffee?" she invited.

Jack shook his head, gesturing towards Elizabeth with his head. Elizabeth still had yet to notice Jack in the doorway. Abigail smiled back at him knowingly.

"Elizabeth," he called, palm outstretched, "take a walk with me."

Elizabeth looked over at him slightly startled. "But," she started to protest, clothes still in his arms.

"Leave it," he said simply. "Come for a walk"

Elizabeth hesitated for a moment longer, knowing that she needed to pack; she and Jack would be leaving on the stagecoach in the morning. Looking over at Jack, her resolve began to waiver. Placing the last of her clothes down, she picked up her coat on her way over to slip her hand into Jack's. Whilst the weather was still quite warm, Elizabeth thought that she should take a coat, just in case.

* * *

As they walked down towards the end of the porch Elizabeth tucked her arm into Jack's body, sliding them closer together.

"You know," she started. "I hope you have finished your packing. The stagecoach will be leaving early in the morning," she told him.

"Yes Miss Thatcher," he replied cheekily. "I have finished. I am sure that I do not need to take as much to Hamilton as you do."

"Jack!" Elizabeth scolded. "You're being incorrigible."

Jack smirked, showing off his dimples, pulling her slightly closer and tighter.

"So, Constable Thornton," Elizabeth started as she changed the subject slightly. "Is this walk going to be taking us anywhere in particular? Or are you just trying to distract me from my packing?"

"Well, I thought we could go to the saloon," Jack started, as he began to lead her towards the doors. Elizabeth looked up at him warily. "We have experienced many moments there," he continued before suddenly changing direction.

"Or we could sit on the porch of the jail. As I sure you have spent many moments sitting there thinking about me," he teased.

Elizabeth gasped, mouth open.

"But I think there is going to be time for that later," he concluded as he took her to the livery.

Letting go of her as they reached Taylor. "Maybe we could take a riding lesson," he told her as without any warning he took her by the waist and hoisted her up into the saddle. "We haven't done that for a long while."

"JACK!" Elizabeth looked very startled sitting on top of the horse, she was not dressed for this, with her dress hiked up slightly and ankles showing.

"And whilst they aren't your knees, I am happy to be here admiring your ankles," he smiled.

Elizabeth began to protest as Jack helped her down.

"Jack Thornton, if you're going to play games I am yet to have finished my packing," she crossly told him.

"So…" Jack drawled. "You don't want to visit the mine with me?"

"Jack…" Elizabeth warned.

Jack didn't say anything as he pulled her back close. They started towards the area where they had shared their first kiss. There Elizabeth saw a blanket laid out along with a basket. She looked at Jack expectantly.

Jack smiled warmly at her. "I know you have many other things you need to do, but I also know that once we arrive in Hamilton we aren't going to have time to ourselves. I just wanted to savour a few quiet moments with you before the mayhem," he told her as he helped her take off her coat; it was quite a warm night.

"Before you sit," he continued. "Let me show you the lake I found when I was doing my rounds a few weeks ago," he finished.

Just around the bend Elizabeth saw a small lake and a clearing of land. Out in the not to far distance she could make out her school house, only a few minutes' walk away. As they made their way closer towards the lake, Elizabeth was sure she could see the beginnings of another building.

"Jack? Where are we?"

Jack took her hand and rubbed his thumb over the back of it. "This," Jack started, suddenly feeling nervous. He cleared his throat. "This…is where I thought we could build our first home."

Elizabeth paused momentarily, too shocked to say anything.

"Elizabeth? What I'm trying to say is…" Jack turned slightly. "I had all of these things that I wanted to say to you…but what I want is really…"

Elizabeth turned to face Jack and her foot didn't move. Instead of facing Jack, she ended up sliding on the slippery edge of the lake. The next thing she saw was water as she tumbled into the lake, pulling Jack with her.

Scrambling to right himself, Jack began to frantically look for Elizabeth not realising that the lake was shallow enough to stand, the water only reaching just above his knees.

"Elizabeth!" he called. Upon turning towards the sound he heard, he found Elizabeth up to her waist in water too, giggling to herself. He began to wade towards her.

"And to think that being a school teacher is safe…" she giggled as she watched Jack come towards her. She started to take in the sight of Jack as he neared her, she felt herself begin to blush as she could see Jack's white button up shirt cling to his body and become slightly see through.

She didn't allow him to say anything as he reached her, rather she reached up and placed her hands around his neck and pulled him down whilst leaning up to get access to his lips. Jack reacted in the way she wanted him to. His hands making their way to tangle in her hair.

Only when the need for oxygen became too much did they separate. Jack rested his forehead against her, breathing heavily. He could see that Elizabeth too was trying to catch her breath and before he could stop words came tumbling out of his mouth.

"Marry me," he whispered.

Elizabeth's breath caught, her eyes widening.

"God Elizabeth," he started, his hand tightening around the nape of her neck slightly, pulling her face even closer to himself. "There is so much more that I want to say and you deserve so much more… Marry me."

Elizabeth's eyes began to glisten with unshed tears. "Yes…" she answered equally as quietly. "Yes!" her voice became louder and more confident.

Jack let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding as he lent down to capture her lips again. Without breaking contact, Jack swept her up into his arms and started out of the water. Elizabeth pulled back to look at him.

"We need to get out of the water," he sensibly told her as he walked towards the blanket and their discarded coats. Once he had placed Elizabeth back onto her feet, he made quick work of helping her put her coat on and then finding another blanket from the basket to place around her shoulders and then started packing up.

"Jack," Elizabeth called, stopping his work. "Let's just sit and enjoy the moment."

"But Elizabeth you're wet… You need to get out of those wet clothes, you're going to catch a cold," he argued as he watched her wring out her skirt.

Elizabeth stood her ground, lowering herself onto the picnic blanket. Jack sighed as he put the basket down. He watched as she pulled her coat slightly tighter around her and wrapped the blanket around her legs, hoping to stem off the cold that she was feeling after getting wet. There was nothing stopping this girl.

Jack knelt down next to her, taking her left hand into his, his other hand reaching up to cup her face and gently pulling her to face him. Elizabeth's eyes sparkled as his hand left her face. Reaching into his jacket pocket he slipped out the box and then scooped the ring into his hand, he tightened his hand around the small piece of metal, feeling the diamond dig into his skin slightly, almost giving him some extra strength to say what he was feeling.

"Elizabeth Thatcher…I would have never thought that this is how my life would have turned out. I know now that I was wrong when I told you that if Mounties were supposed to have wives, we would have been issued with one. It just takes a special woman to be a Mountie's wife, and for me that special person is you. It's because of you that I'm here, from the baby-sitting which I know was wrong, to seeing you in Hamilton and watching you learn to adjust to life in a small coal mining town. Now when I look at my future, all I see is you. I've seen you as a teacher command a class and take on challenges that I would have never thought you would have succeeded at. You've proven me wrong each and every time. Elizabeth, when I spent time with you out on the homestead, it was clear to me that you were the one for me. I want that life with you. I know there isn't anything that we can't face together and I want to face all the challenges of our lives together. I want to hear our children's feet running on the wooden stairs and listen to you tell them stories before they go to sleep. I want to build our lives together. I know that we might not have the same life that you are used to in Hamilton but I love you…and I fall in love with you a little more everyday… So Miss Elizabeth Thatcher…" he asked as he open his hand to reveal the engagement ring. "Will you marry me?"

Elizabeth gasped at the sight of the ring.

"I don't need big mansions and fancy clothes Jack, I just want you. So yes… yes I will marry you."

Jack's smile grew even wider, he didn't even know that it was possible to feel this happy as he slid the ring onto its rightful place. Gathering her up into his arms, he kissed her.

Elizabeth's gaze slipped down towards the ring, watching as the diamonds caught the last rays of light.

"It's perfect Jack. It's the most beautiful piece of jewellery I'll ever own," she told him as she snuggled into his side, enjoying the warmth that he gave off.

"So…" she started. "Tell me about this house you want to build," she told him.

Jack smiled as he hugged her tighter before beginning to tell her of his thoughts for their house.

* * *

 **So that is it... The last chapter! Thank you once again for reading and sticking it out.**

 **There are photos of the ring on my blog if you want to take a look. Link is in my profile.  
**

 **Until next time... Em**


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